Surprising choice or genius casting? This Hollywood actress is “in talks” to play a young Cruella de Vil

“Cruella de Vil, Cruella de Vil, if she doesn't scare you, no evil thing will…”

A classic Disney villain, Cruella de Vil has successfully terrified children the world over with her penchant for puppy fur and creepy monochrome tastes for decades.

Now the iconic character is getting her own live-action film – and The Hollywood Reporter has Birdman star Emma Stone in the frame to play her.

Emma Stone giving the old Dalmatian monochrome a go

The script was reported to be in development in 2013, following other live-action Disney projects, including Maleficent (released in 2014) and Cinderella (out last year), and will be an origins story starring a younger de Vil.

Glenn Close memorably portrayed the character in 1996's 101 Dalmatians, a version of the 1961 animation One Hundred and One Dalmatians, itself an adaptation of the 1956 novel of the same name.

Did Cruella de Vil have a defining childhood moment with a cute furry animal?

The website reports the Superbad star, 27, is in “early negotiations” to play the part, while the script was initially worked on by The Devil Wears Prada screenwriter Aline Brosh McKenna. It's now being written by Kelly Marcel, who wrote 2013's Saving Mr. Banks and the film adaptation of Fifty Shades of Grey.

While de Vil may well have been all sweetness and light as a young woman, the original novel says she was expelled from school for drinking ink, so we've got our fingers crossed for an evilly good performance from Stone. Lock up your Dalmatians, people.